On his debut as a leader, 27-year-old pianist D.D. Jackson often plays overcrowded chords in catchy rhythmic phrases that are very reminiscent of the late great pianist
Don Pullen, although on some of the slower pieces he shows more originality.
Jackson's compositions are sometimes soulful, but his inside/outside playing (on quartets, trios, and a solo "Funerale") is quite unpredictable. Tenor saxophonist
David Murray throws everything he can into his solo on the opener, "Waltz for a New Life," evolving from screams and honks to upper-register screeches; all of his other improvisations seem anticlimatic and almost mellow in comparison. Bassist
John Geggie and drummer Jean Martin (who, as with the pianist, are from Ottawa, Canada) are fine in support, but one's attention is constantly drawn to the often-outlandish solos of
Murray and
Jackson. ~ Scott Yanow